Pocket money is the contribution to additional personal expenses for participants in Volunteering Projects of the European Solidarity Corps. In Volunteering Projects, pocket money is a contribution based on unit costs per day per participant. In Volunteering Projects, Pocket Money per day is 4 EUR in Romania and 12 EUR in Denmark. Our guide on what the European Solidarity Corps is introduces the programme, and what being fully funded means sets out every cost item.
Last updated: October 2026.
What is pocket money in the European Solidarity Corps?
Pocket money is a contribution to additional personal expenses for participants. Pocket money is a contribution based on unit costs per day per participant. Organisational Support covers costs linked to the subsistence of participants, such as boarding, lodging and local travel. Our guide on the hidden costs of a fully-funded project explains what you still pay yourself, and how much money you actually need works through a real monthly budget.
How much pocket money do you get per day?
In Volunteering Projects, pocket money is a unit cost per day per participant. Here is the Pocket Money amount in EUR per day in Volunteering Projects for each host country.
🇦🇹 Austria: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇧🇪 Belgium: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇧🇬 Bulgaria: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇭🇷 Croatia: 10 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇨🇾 Cyprus: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇨🇿 Czechia: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇩🇰 Denmark: 12 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇪🇪 Estonia: 5 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇫🇮 Finland: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇫🇷 France: 8 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇩🇪 Germany: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇬🇷 Greece: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇭🇺 Hungary: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇮🇪 Ireland: 11 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇮🇹 Italy: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇱🇻 Latvia: 5 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇱🇹 Lithuania: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇱🇺 Luxembourg: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇲🇹 Malta: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇳🇱 Netherlands: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇵🇱 Poland: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇵🇹 Portugal: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇷🇴 Romania: 4 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇸🇰 Slovakia: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇸🇮 Slovenia: 5 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇪🇸 Spain: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇸🇪 Sweden: 7 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇲🇰 Republic of North Macedonia: 4 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇮🇸 Iceland: 8 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇱🇮 Liechtenstein: 8 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇹🇷 Türkiye: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🇳🇴 Norway: 8 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
🌍 Third country neighbouring the EU: 6 EUR per day in Volunteering Projects
Our guide on which countries can take part lists the participating countries, and how to find Erasmus+ and ESC projects shows where the offers are published.
How are your pocket money days counted?
Pocket money is based on the host country and the duration of the activity per participant, excluding accompanying persons, and if necessary also one travel day before the activity and one travel day following the activity, and up to four additional days for participants receiving a green travel grant. Green travel is travel that uses low-emissions means of transport for at least half of the round trip, such as bus, train, bike or car-pooling, and traveling by boat will be considered as green travel if combined with another low emissions means of transport. Our guide on green travel in Erasmus+ and ESC explains the sustainable transport top-up, and ESC project lengths explained sets out the duration of each activity.
What does pocket money not cover?
Our guide on what being fully funded means lists every cost item in one place.
🏠 Boarding, lodging and local travel: Organisational Support covers costs directly linked to the implementation of volunteering activities, such as preparation, monitoring and support of participants, and costs linked to the subsistence of participants, such as boarding, lodging and local travel.
✈️ Travel: the contribution to the travel costs of participants from their place of origin to the venue of the activity and return is based on the travel distance per participant, including accompanying persons. Our guide on how travel reimbursement works shows how the amount is calculated.
🗣️ Linguistic support: costs linked to the support offered to participants, prior to departure or during the activity, in order to improve the knowledge of the language they will use to carry out their volunteering tasks are funded with 150 EUR per participant, only for activities lasting 60 days or more, and for cross-border activities only for languages and/or levels not offered by the Online Language Support. Our guide on what Online Language Support is explains the free online option.
🛂 Visa and related costs: visa and visa related costs, residence permits, vaccinations, medical certifications and clearance requirements costs are exceptional costs funded at 100 % of eligible costs. The request for financial support for exceptional costs must be motivated and approved. Our guide on visas and residence permits for ESC and Erasmus+ walks through the paperwork.
🩺 Personal insurance for activities in your own country: costs connected to personal insurance for in-country activities are exceptional costs, only for in-country participants in need of private personal insurance to reach the same coverage as the insurance coverage for cross-border activities. The request for financial support for exceptional costs must be motivated and approved. Our guide on insurance for ESC volunteers explains how cover is arranged.
Is pocket money different in ESC Volunteering Teams in High Priority Areas?
Volunteer support is one contribution that covers travel costs and exceptional costs such as visa and vaccinations costs, personal insurance for in-country activities, residence permits, medical certifications and contribution to additional personal expenses for volunteers, which is the pocket money. Volunteer support is a contribution based on unit costs of 26 EUR per day per volunteer. Volunteer support is based on the duration of the volunteering team activity, if necessary including also one travel day before the activity and one travel day following the activity, per volunteer, including accompanying persons. Our guide on what ESC Volunteering Teams are explains how a team is formed, and ESC project lengths explainedsets out how long a team activity runs.
Is pocket money different in Humanitarian Aid Volunteering?
Volunteer support is one contribution that covers travel costs and exceptional costs such as visa and vaccinations costs, residence permits, medical certifications and contribution to additional personal expenses for volunteers, which is the pocket money. Volunteer support is a contribution based on unit costs of 35 EUR per day per volunteer. Volunteer support is based on the duration of the activity, if necessary including also one travel day before the activity and one travel day following the activity, per volunteer, including accompanying persons. Organisational Support is a contribution to costs linked to the subsistence of volunteers, such as boarding, lodging and local travel. Our guide on what Humanitarian Aid Volunteering is explains where these projects run, and what being fully funded means sets out the full list of items.
Frequently asked questions
Does the amount depend on your home country or the host country?
Pocket money is based on the host country and the duration of the activity per participant, excluding accompanying persons, and if necessary also one travel day before the activity and one travel day following the activity, and up to four additional days for participants receiving a green travel grant. Our guide on green travel in Erasmus+ and ESC explains the extra days for green travel.
Is pocket money paid on top of board and lodging?
Organisational Support covers costs linked to the subsistence of participants, such as boarding, lodging and local travel, and pocket money is a contribution to additional personal expenses for participants. Our guide on what being fully funded means sets out each item one by one.
What is the pocket money per day in Denmark and in Romania?
In Volunteering Projects, Pocket Money per day is 12 EUR in Denmark and 4 EUR in Romania and in the Republic of North Macedonia. Our guide on which countries can take part lists the participating countries.
Do you get pocket money as a volunteer in a volunteering team?
Volunteer support is one contribution that covers travel costs and exceptional costs such as visa and vaccinations costs, personal insurance for in-country activities, residence permits, medical certifications and contribution to additional personal expenses for volunteers, which is the pocket money, at 26 EUR per day per volunteer. Our guide on what ESC Volunteering Teams are explains how a team is formed.
Know your daily amount before you say yes
The related pages below from Youth Works Hub cover each part of this guide in more detail.
Related pages: what being fully funded means · how travel reimbursement works · green travel in Erasmus+ and ESC · the hidden costs of a fully-funded project · how much money you actually need
👉 ESC projects: youthworkshub.org/category/esc-projects
